The Mighty a: The Short, Heroic Life of the Uss Atlanta, America's First Warship Commissioned After Pearl Harbor - Hardcover

Winkler, David F.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1636245021 ISBN 13: 9781636245027

Verlag: Casemate Publishers, 2025

Inhaltsangabe

“This microhistory of the birth, life, and death of an American cruiser offers valuable insight into the early years of World War II, including the procedures, processes, and personnel of the Navy, naval life, and naval warfare. The account of its loss in the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal is particularly gripping.” — Craig Symonds, author of Nimitz at WarPrior to the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, the U.S. Navy’s leadership discovered that the surface fleet was highly vulnerable to air attack, thanks to the introduction of drone aircraft that could simulate attacks on its warships. The Navy’s gunners simply did not have the coordinated firepower to knock them down. Recognition of this vulnerability resulted in a new class of warship led by USS Atlanta. The attack on Pearl Harbor shocked the nation. Following the declaration of war, lines formed outside of recruiting stations as Americans desired to don the uniform. With Margaret Mitchell serving as the ship’s sponsor, Atlanta’s commissioning on Christmas Eve 1941 served as a rallying point for a country weary of bad news overseas. Some of those new recruits would find their way to Atlanta’s quarterdeck. For the capital of the Peachtree State, the ship was not only a source of civic pride, but a reason for many young men to join the Navy with the promise of assignment. The commanding officer, Captain Samuel Jenkins, had just weeks to ready a group of nearly 700 sailors—the majority having no seagoing experience—into a crew that could effectively fight the ship in combat. Joining the Pacific Fleet in time for the epic Battle of Midway, Atlanta's guns would fire the first salvos in the vicious Naval Battle of Guadalcanal early on November 13, 1942. Heavily damaged by gunfire and torpedoes, Atlanta would be scuttled later that day, only hours after the tragic loss of sister ship Juneau (CL-52). Atlanta was awarded five battle stars for her World War II service and a Presidential Unit Citation for her “fighting spirit” in the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal. This first comprehensive account of Atlanta’s war covers her construction, commissioning, and full war service.

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Über die Autorin bzw. den Autor

David F. Winkler is a retired Navy commander having received his commission through Penn State NROTC. Having earned his Ph.D. at American University, he served as staff historian at the Naval Historical Foundation for 25 years, has taught at the U.S. Naval Academy and Naval War College, and held the Charles Lindbergh Chair of Aerospace History at the Smithsonian. He has published five books with the Naval Institute Press and writes a monthly historical perspective column for Sea Power Magazine. He is the author of Witness to Neptune's Inferno, based on the diary of Atlanta's Assistant Gunnery Officer Lloyd M. Mustin.

Details zur Ausgabe

• Verlag: Casemate Publishers
• Erscheinungsdatum: 2025
• Sprache: Englisch
• ISBN 10: 1636245021
• ISBN 13: 9781636245027
• Einband: Gebundene Ausgabe
• Anzahl der Seiten: 288
• Kontakt zum Hersteller: Nicht verfügbar
• Verantwortliche Person: Nicht verfügbar